


Extranet

by Arvanion



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Gen, Internet, Mass Effect 1, Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect 3, Post-Mass Effect 3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-14
Updated: 2016-06-14
Packaged: 2018-07-15 02:23:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7202489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arvanion/pseuds/Arvanion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of vignettes about the online presence of various characters.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Extranet

As Liara settles in on the  _Normandy,_ familiarizing herself with the layout and the various members of the crew, she also begins compiling the results of her research on Therum.

She enjoys her sporadic conversations with Commander Shepard, and is quite willing to talk about her previous work. One night, she notices the hit-counter on the site where her papers are published has been increasing steadily. A quick look through the traffic stats shows her that most of the pageviews are coming from an Alliance vessel.

The next time the two of them discuss archaelogy and culture, Shepard has a few relevant questions prepared.

\- - -

Mere hours after the Alliance press releases news of the death of Ashley Williams on Virmire, the net is already fighting over her legacy. Recordings from various security cameras, showing her speaking scornfully to "aliens" and questioning the decision to allow other species on the  _Normandy_ 's crew, make the rounds of various sites.

Human supremacist groups trumpet her as a martyr. Others point out that her last action was to help an STG team escape--giving her own life to buy salarians time. Others still counter that point with the argument that she was knowingly destroying a facility made to help the krogan species.

Kaidan, exhausted already, biotically smashes his terminal into pieces when comments along the lines of "Good riddance to the racist bitch" come flooding in.

\- - -

The aftermath of the attack on the Citadel sees a series of ripples spreading across the extranet. First comes the relief: that the  _Destiny Ascension_ was saved, that the Council survived the attempt on their lives.

Then comes the disbelief: humanity, an upstart species with a scant few decades in contact with the Citadel, has been granted a seat on the Council.

The third ripple is of a quieter sort, started by the news that the Citadel attack was spearheaded by a geth fleet, and that a quarian engineer accompanied the Council Spectre who stopped Saren.

Donations to relief efforts of all sorts, including the Migrant Fleet, see a considerable spike in the following weeks. But so, too, do the postings blaming the quarians for creating the geth in the first place, and calls for their entire race to be brought to task.

\- - -

Liara never expected to end up on the cover of a tabloid, but there she is. The picture is obviously the work of an amateur, shot using inferior equipment, but it's clearly one of her and Commander Shepard.

The two are on a balcony in the Presidium, leaning against the railing and sharing a quick kiss. The headline, of course, has taken that and run with it. " _Spectre Shepard Smooches Scientist!_ " And beneath that, the obligatory subtitle: " _Have the_ _Archaeologist and the Commander Found Love Among the Stars?"_

They share a laugh about it, and another quick kiss, later that night.

\- - -

The day that Shepard's death goes public, the extranet is flooded by anonymous posters claiming to be _Normandy_ crew members. They post tell-all accounts pinning blame for the Commander's death on everything from a Council conspiracy to a volus hit squad. Most are clearly false.

Liara knows the truth, and so, keeps quiet.

\- - -

The  _Blasto_ internet forums are the site of some of the most cheerful chaos on the extranet, containing everything from speculation on the next exploits of the Hanar Spectre to conspiracy theories. One popular thread is devoted to discussion of the Omega vigilante Archangel, and trying to speculate their identity.

The most prolific poster in that thread goes by the handle  _supercalibrationmystic._ Forum-goers are rather appalled by his sense of humor, but his theories about Archangel's identity as a former C-Sec agent are quite convincing.

\- - -

Even after Commander Shepard's death, rumors of "Shepard sightings" continue to trickle in. Two years later, that trickle becomes a downpour: Shepard is in Omega, working with Archangel. No, she's pursuing the Shadow Broker on Ilium. She helped Cerberus abduct the citizens of Horizon. The batarians were abducting the citizens of Horizon, and Shepard stopped them.

In the heart of the Shadow Broker's ship, Liara surveys the information at hand and carefully manipulates it to give the woman she loves the upper hand in the minds of the people.

\- - -

Kasumi is full of questions for Samara; all in the interest of "team bonding," of course. The Justicar reminisces fondly about her childhood, her old life, and her present adventures.

It's not until she sees her own face on a pop-up ad--" _Meet Hot Asari Matriarchs In Your Sector!_ "--that she realizes the thief needed that information to set up a dating site profile.

\- - -

A would-be whistleblower leaks a few tidbits from the STG's classified files--among them, Dr. Mordin Solus's role in the alteration of the genophage.

In the Information Age, it's all too easy to obtain personal information on anyone you choose. Mordin's private and public accounts are flooded with hate mail, denouncing him as a murderer and a war criminal.

Many of the messages encourage him to kill himself.

Absorbed in the leftovers of Maelon's research, the doctor's only response is "No time for that now."

\- - -

Shepard's return to Alliance custody sparks a media firestorm, especially considering the events in Bahak. As her house arrest continues, one topic continues to trend across the extranet: " _Justice for Commander Shepard_."

Depending on who's posting, the phrase has very different meanings.

\- - -

It's difficult for Liara to keep in contact with Shepard, given the heightened security. Naturally, she could have done it--but she knows that the Alliance agents monitoring Shepard's extranet communications might see her secured comm channel as suspicious.

Instead, she reads the logs of the monitors herself, and discovers that Shepard has been reading quite a bit of poetry by one "Jacqueline Nought."

\- - -

When the Reapers attack Earth the news spreads quickly. Many dismiss it--either out of prejudice against the upstart humans, or out of reluctance to believe that such a thing could truly happen.

The claims that the invasion was faked vanish as the Reapers strike Palaven.

\- - -

At Liara's suggestion, Steve Cortez creates an account on a website made for Alliance servicemen and their family members. Surrounded by stories like his, and grief like his, he begins to come to terms with Robert's death, and provides as much comfort as he is given.

\- - -

There's rarely much extranet traffic from Tuchanka, but the explosions at the Shroud and the rumors of a cure for the genophage are enough to start speculation.

At the center of the whirlwind are two names: Commander Shepard, and Dr. Mordin Solus.

\- - -

After Thessia comes an outpouring of betrayed anger. Sentients all over the galaxy, fear and sorrow and rage all mixed together, demanding answers.

"She saved Rannoch, but not Thessia." "She only cares about Earth." "We shouldn't be surprised. All humans are the same."

When Liara, posting under an anonymous account, tentatively suggests that Shepard is equally upset by her failure, she is met with a tidal wave of derision, especially from fellow asari.

"Like her feelings even matter at a time like this. It's not like she's one of us." "How could she possibly understand?" "She's going through all of this trouble to save Earth, but couldn't care less about the other planets." "Shepard hates the asari. This is her way of getting payback against Councilor Tevos." "She  _wanted_ us dead."

EDI quietly firewalls away the worst of this discourse, knowing that trying to deal with their misplaced anger would only further the Commander's despair.

_\- - -_

The news about Sanctuary comes as a devastating blow to those who had sent family and friends there, hoping for their safety. The rumors spread, fast and furious: that Sanctuary was an effort by humans to wipe out the other alien species, that the Alliance masterminded it, that the high command is working with the Reapers.

EDI and Liara work around the clock to quash these rumors, countering hysteria with facts. And yet they wonder whether or not it will be enough.

\- - -

" _Evil Clones ATTACK?! Commander Shepard Seen Fighting Commander Shepard_ " reads the front page of the article. Attached are several blurry photos of two Shepards trading punches on the _Normandy_ 's landing ramp, taken from security cameras in the high-rise buildings of the wards.

Everyone knows it's a hoax, of course. It does give the conspiracy debunkers something ridiculous to laugh at, though, so it's good for morale at least.

\- - -

Tali vaguely recalls something from the previous night: a few too many drinks, a rather enthusiastic re-enactment of the differences between the _Normandy SR1_ and the _SR2_ , and something about "six million extranet hits and a fansite."

When she gets around to logging on to her omnitool and looking it up, she feels a headache coming on that has nothing to do with her hangover.

\- - -

The day after the battle at the Crucible, Liara sits down in front of her terminal and pages through folder after folder of years-old pictures. Pictures of the Normandy, of its crew, of its commander.

It's the last that she dwells on the most. The flickering screen is a pale imitation of the drell's eidetic memories, but it's all she has, so she clings to those memories of Shepard as if letting go will drown her. Maybe it will.

When the first wave of grief is past, she returns to work, setting up a site where those who admired the Commander can gather to grieve her--Shepard, and all of the others who were lost before the Reapers were destroyed.

And she tells their story: of how they met, the work they did together, the friends they made.

How they fell in love.

Every day, another picture is posted, another story of happiness or of sorrow from days gone by.

In time, others join in.

\- - -

The day that Shepard comes back is the happiest of her life, and she has the smiling pictures to prove it.

**Author's Note:**

> Written, with considerable hastiness, over the course of a few hours. Any discussion (or thoughts of your own on other things that might happen) is welcome! ^_^


End file.
